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| Air France jet debris recovered | Air France jet debris recovered |
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| Brazilian navy ships have begun recovering debris from an Air France jet lost over the Atlantic this week, a Brazilian air force official has said. | Brazilian navy ships have begun recovering debris from an Air France jet lost over the Atlantic this week, a Brazilian air force official has said. |
| Brig Ramon Borges Cardoso said the debris will be taken to France, which is leading the investigation into the crash, AFP news agency reported. | Brig Ramon Borges Cardoso said the debris will be taken to France, which is leading the investigation into the crash, AFP news agency reported. |
| Searches have located debris but no flight data recorders or bodies. | Searches have located debris but no flight data recorders or bodies. |
| In Paris, relatives of passengers have been told that there is no hope of survivors being found. | In Paris, relatives of passengers have been told that there is no hope of survivors being found. |
| Air France chief executive Pierre-Henri Gourgeon and chairman Jean-Cyril Spinetta briefed the relatives in a hotel near Paris Charles de Gaulle airport where they have been waiting for news. | Air France chief executive Pierre-Henri Gourgeon and chairman Jean-Cyril Spinetta briefed the relatives in a hotel near Paris Charles de Gaulle airport where they have been waiting for news. |
| Mr Gourgeon said the jet, which was carrying 228 people from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, broke apart either in the air or when it hit the sea. See a map of the plane's route | Mr Gourgeon said the jet, which was carrying 228 people from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, broke apart either in the air or when it hit the sea. See a map of the plane's route |
| "What is clear is that there was no landing," said a support group representative who was at the meeting, Guillaume Denoix de Saint-Marc. "There's no chance the escape slides came out." | "What is clear is that there was no landing," said a support group representative who was at the meeting, Guillaume Denoix de Saint-Marc. "There's no chance the escape slides came out." |
| Friends and relatives gathered for a memorial service in Rio de Janeiro | |
| In Rio de Janeiro, hundreds of people gathered at a memorial service attended by the French and Brazilian foreign ministers. | |
| "Those who are missing are here in our hearts and in our memories," said the French minister, Bernard Kouchner. | |
| A memorial service was held in Paris on Wednesday. | |
| Brazilian navy vessels have been combing the area, about 1,100km (690 miles) north-east of Brazil's coast. | |
| Three more Brazilian boats and a French ship equipped with small submarines are expected to arrive in the area in the next few days. | Three more Brazilian boats and a French ship equipped with small submarines are expected to arrive in the area in the next few days. |
| 'Clock ticking' | 'Clock ticking' |
| French military spokesman Christophe Prazuck said the priority was looking for wreckage from the plane, before turning the search to flight data recorders. | French military spokesman Christophe Prazuck said the priority was looking for wreckage from the plane, before turning the search to flight data recorders. |
| "The clock is ticking on finding debris before they spread out and before they sink or disappear," he said. | "The clock is ticking on finding debris before they spread out and before they sink or disappear," he said. |
| Mr Cardoso said that among the debris retrieved on Thursday were yellow, brown and white items that appeared to come from the inside of the plane. | |
| Debris has been found over an area of 90km (56 miles), which is seen as an indication that the plane could have broken up. | |
| French officials have said the recorders, which could be deep under water, may never be found. | |
| FLIGHT AF 447 TIMELINE Plane left Rio de Janeiro at 1900 local time (2200 GMT) on 31 MayContact lost 0130 GMTHad been due to land at 1110 local time (0910 GMT) in Paris Timeline of Flight AF 447 Air disasters timeline Mystery of Air France flight Challenge of deep-sea debris | |
| Officials have warned that they are far from working out the cause of the crash. | Officials have warned that they are far from working out the cause of the crash. |
| Investigators are reported to be relying on a stream of automated messages sent out just before the crash, which suggested the plane's systems shut down as it flew through high thunderstorms. | Investigators are reported to be relying on a stream of automated messages sent out just before the crash, which suggested the plane's systems shut down as it flew through high thunderstorms. |
| Brazilian Defence Minister Nelson Jobim said a 20km (13 mile) oil slick found by search planes "means that it is improbable that there was a fire or explosion". | Brazilian Defence Minister Nelson Jobim said a 20km (13 mile) oil slick found by search planes "means that it is improbable that there was a fire or explosion". |
| A Spanish pilot flying in the area at the time of the crash was quoted by his airline, Air Comet, as saying he had seen an "intense flash of white light, which followed a descending and vertical trajectory and which broke up in six seconds". | A Spanish pilot flying in the area at the time of the crash was quoted by his airline, Air Comet, as saying he had seen an "intense flash of white light, which followed a descending and vertical trajectory and which broke up in six seconds". |
| A report in the French newspaper Le Monde suggested that the plane could have been flying too slowly for poor weather conditions. | A report in the French newspaper Le Monde suggested that the plane could have been flying too slowly for poor weather conditions. |
| The paper said Airbus, the maker of the plane, would issue A330 jets with new advice on flying in storms. | The paper said Airbus, the maker of the plane, would issue A330 jets with new advice on flying in storms. |
| Airbus declined to comment on the report, though an unnamed official told AFP news agency that it was normal to update airlines following an accident. | Airbus declined to comment on the report, though an unnamed official told AFP news agency that it was normal to update airlines following an accident. |
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